Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: Joelel on February 04, 2010, 02:22:30 PM

Title: Wire wax foundation or wax
Post by: Joelel on February 04, 2010, 02:22:30 PM
How does just wax foundations with out wire hold up when spining honey out ? If you don't have wire,do they all come apart ?
Title: Re: Wire wax foundation or wax
Post by: doak on February 04, 2010, 03:21:19 PM
The first time you will have breakage. "Sometime". I spin about half from the first side. Turn it around spin the second side completely then go back and finish the first. Also, if your honey isn't the stiff kind, spin just fast enough to get the honey out. You know about quality control I'm sure. Same thing. Hope I made sense.  :)doak
Title: Re: Wire wax foundation or wax
Post by: theriverhawk on February 04, 2010, 07:10:34 PM
Not worth the risk of a blowout for me.  Wax without wire foundation is comb for me.  Too many frames have blown out during extraction...no matter what the speed was. 
I've had some wax foundation that I haven't used up.  Each year, I put two frames of wax foundation in each super.  The rest is wired or plastic.  The two wax frames are cut for comb honey and the rest is extracted.  I had said I wouldn't order any more wax foundation after this is gone.  But it really has been "fun" to have the comb each year.  Some older folks in town want that because of the memories it brings back of their fathers or grandfathers. 
If you have only wax right now, I'd buy some wired and do what I do.  That way, you can extract and keep the filled out frames for the next flow and you will have some good comb honey too.  The best of both worlds!
Title: Re: Wire wax foundation or wax
Post by: doak on February 04, 2010, 09:13:27 PM
I will let the bees make the foundation for comb honey. I will not use the commercial wax foundation because there is no telling what kind of chemicals it contains. IMHO :)doak
Title: Re: Wire wax foundation or wax
Post by: Michael Bush on February 05, 2010, 01:52:40 AM
I extract it fine all the time.  Wire or no wire, you need to start gently, especially with new comb.
Title: Re: Wire wax foundation or wax
Post by: indypartridge on February 05, 2010, 08:15:02 AM
Quote from: Michael Bush on February 05, 2010, 01:52:40 AM
I extract it fine all the time.  Wire or no wire, you need to start gently, especially with new comb.
Ditto.
Title: Re: Wire wax foundation or wax
Post by: CVBees on February 05, 2010, 10:58:58 AM
Not to muck up the string... but in my case as a first year with no extractor who will be using crush and strain or just gravity if that works???

I have not build my electric embedder and with no experience, having a hard with with wax foundations and their size compared to the frames I purchased.  I bend the wires at the bottom up and its still a bit big trying to fit in the frame (Dadant)

sorry Tangent....  I would like to go wireless on deeps to avoid the hassle or if I prop up full frames of honey to sit uncapped and let gravity pull my honey out?  I would like to keep the drawn comb.